


You Deal With It

by tehfanglyfish



Series: Fun With Ficlets [14]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: And Calls On It In His Hour of Need, Arthur Has Returned, Arthur Knows About Merlin's Magic (Merlin), BAMF Merlin (Merlin), Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Modern Era, Post-Canon, Spiders Can Be Scary Y'all, nothing but fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-08
Updated: 2020-07-08
Packaged: 2021-03-04 19:07:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 677
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25141390
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tehfanglyfish/pseuds/tehfanglyfish
Summary: Arthur finds himself hiding from a ferocious beast terrorizing the kitchen. Merlin comes to his rescue.
Relationships: Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)
Series: Fun With Ficlets [14]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1371040
Comments: 38
Kudos: 235





	You Deal With It

**Author's Note:**

  * For [blueskysunnyday](https://archiveofourown.org/users/blueskysunnyday/gifts).



> This is short and rushed, but I hope it helps brighten your day, [blueskysunnyday](https://archiveofourown.org/users/blueskysunnyday) <3
> 
> _______________________  
> I fear lawyers more than spiders so I am now clearly stating that I don't own these characters, make no claim to this franchise, and have never once in all my days profited from this here fic writing hobby of mine.

The blood-curdling shriek echoed through the house, loud enough to be heard above the spray of the shower. Merlin leapt out of the water, hastily grabbing a towel to wrap around his waist before racing out the bathroom door and down the hall.

Arthur had been back for over six months now and was generally adjusting well to life in the twenty-first century. For him to scream like that meant something was seriously wrong.

He found Arthur standing just outside the archway that led into their kitchen.

“What’s the matter?” Merlin panted.

“That,” Arthur said, gesturing inside the kitchen. “No, don’t go in there. It’s too dangerous.”

The strong hand grabbing Merlin’s shoulder stopped him before he could move forward. For a moment, he forgot about the apparent danger, distracted by Arthur’s warm grip on his exposed skin. But now wasn’t the time. He shoved those thoughts away and surveyed the situation as best he could from the hall.

“What?”

“ _That_!”

“I still don’t see it.”

“The giant monster. It’s right there. Above the refrigerator.”

Merlin squinted into the distance, searching for the supposed monster. Arthur had gone still, barely breathing. The only sounds were that of the water from Merlin’s wet hair dripping on the wooden floor.

“It’s moving. There it goes.”

As his eyes followed Arthur’s pointing finger, Merlin saw it.

“That? That’s why you screamed like the Dorocha were after you? Arthur, that’s…”

“The most terrifying thing I’ve seen since I walked out of the lake.”

“You have to be joking.”

A good number of things had given Arthur a fright in the first weeks after his return – from loud appliances to even louder advertising, there had been more than one occasion where some aspect of the modern world had caused Arthur to jump. That was understandable. Life had changed a lot in fifteen hundred years. But not this.

“It’s not funny, Merlin.”

“It really is.”

“Look at it. It’s all…” Arthur’s gestures suggested something far larger than what was menacing the kitchen. “Plus its legs. It has far too many of them. And its face…”

“You can’t even see its face.”

“I don’t need to. I can tell it’s just as awful as the rest of it. Stop laughing.”

Arthur punched his bicep causing Merlin to only laugh harder.

“You, Arthur Pendragon, Camelot’s most formidable warrior, are afraid to go into the kitchen because of one small spider,” Merlin said when he was finally able to catch his breath.

“It’s huge.”

“It’s really not.”

“Alright then. If you think it’s so tiny and harmless, you deal with it.”

Arthur manhandled him in a way that left Merlin thinking about things that had little to do with wayward arachnids, but before he could make a suggestion about better ways they might spend the afternoon, Arthur had shoved him into the kitchen.

“You seriously want me to save you from the spider?”

“Yes.”

Arthur’s tone had shifted, no longer full of bluster and annoyance. Instead, it was soft and vulnerable. Just as Arthur had been when he stepped from the Lake of Avalon and into Merlin’s arms, the future enabling him to finally confess what had been on his heart for so long in Camelot.

“Fine,” Merlin said. “But only because I love you.”

A few flicks of his wrist and the beast was dealt with.

“I should have legalized sorcery as soon as I became regent,” Arthur said as he watched Merlin use magic to open the window and gently hover the spider outside. “It’s very useful in times of emergency.”

Merlin laughed and kissed his nose.

“Now that I’ve rescued you, I’m going to finish my shower. I still have soap in my hair and it itches. You are, of course, welcome to join me.”

He gave his hips a suggestive shake, then headed back toward the bathroom. Merlin had made it halfway down the hall when Arthur appeared at his side.

“I think I’ll take you up on your offer. For safety, of course. You never know when the spider might return.”


End file.
